JP2003163757A - Call system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a call system in which calling can be more surely performed even when there is a fault caused by congestion on one part of a circuit switched network. <P>SOLUTION: In a call system 1, calling is performed from a wireless calling handset 2 through a public base station 3 connected to a public line network or through a wireless base unit 4 for business to a call center 5 to become a voice call destination or to a mail center 6 to become an electronic mail transmission destination provided on the side of the public line network by using a calling means by a voice or electronic mail. When the congestion on the public line network is detected, the wireless calling handset 2 in such a call system 1 performs calling by selecting one of calling routes of the public base station 3 and the wireless base unit for business and selecting a calling means for the voice and/or for the electronic mail. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a notification system using a public line network.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art PHS (Personal Handyphone) is used as a mobile terminal together with a mobile phone.
System) is widespread. Both the PHS and the mobile phone use a radio wave for communication between the terminal and the base station, and the common point is that the base station and the mobile phone are connected to a mobile communication exchange through a fixed transmission path for communication. Also,
As a mechanism for using them while moving together, there is also a handover mechanism that switches the base station that is the connection destination when it comes to the cell boundary, which is the range of radio wave management in one base station. However, PHS is different in that the output of radio waves is set smaller than that of a mobile phone, and that existing telephone network equipment that has spread throughout the country is used as much as possible in consideration of economy.

A reporting system 100 utilizing this PHS
As shown in FIG. The notification system 100 is used as an emergency notification system that notifies a lifesaving center that informs a predetermined emergency response destination such as an emergency hospital when the user has a physical condition change, for example. In addition to the wireless base station 60, which is a digital communication terminal for wireless communication, the public base station 60 that relays digital communication data from the wireless base station 50 to a public network such as ISDN, and the public base station 60 It comprises a self-employed wireless master device 70 that is installed for the purpose of improving communication quality and relays digital communication data, and a call center 80 and a mail center 90 to which the wireless notification slave device 50 reports. In addition, this reporting system 100
In the call center 80, a dedicated staff member handles the call directly, and the mail center 90 handles it by e-mail.

In such a reporting system, in many cases, the telephone number of the call center is stored in advance in the wireless reporting handset as a reporting destination, and the reporting person only needs to perform a simple operation such as pressing an abbreviated button. Notifications have been made to the call center and mail center.
Therefore, the user of the reporting system can receive advice from a dedicated staff member by simply performing a simple operation such as pressing a button provided on the wireless reporting slave unit.

[0005]

However, as described above, the existing telephone network equipment is used between the public base station or the self-employed wireless master device which is the repeater and the call center or the mail center which is the notification destination. Therefore, a part of those circuit-switched networks may not be connected due to congestion. In such a case, it may be possible to install a timer on the wireless notification handset side to provide a function to perform outgoing call processing again after a certain period of time, but rather when congestion does not subside after a certain period of time. It can also result in increased congestion.

In view of the above circumstances, the present invention intends to provide a reporting system capable of more reliably reporting from a wireless reporting handset to a reporting destination even when a part of the circuit switching network has a failure due to congestion. To do.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, in the notification system of the present invention, a wireless notification handset connected to a public line network via a self-employed wireless master device or a public base station, In a reporting system for reporting to a call center that is a voice call destination or a mail center that is an email destination, which is provided on the public network side by using a reporting means by voice or electronic mail, the wireless reporting handset is replaced. When the congestion in the line network is detected, the report path of the self-employed wireless master device or the public base station is selected and the report means of voice and / or e-mail is selected to make the report.

With this configuration, in the wireless communication handset, when congestion in the switched network is detected, depending on the congestion state,
A report route such as a self-employed wireless master device or a public base station is selected, and a report means such as voice and / or electronic mail is selected to make a report.

Further, it is preferable that the mail center includes a mail server for receiving an electronic mail, and when the electronic mail is received from the wireless notification handset, the mail center is automatically transferred to the call center for notification. In this case, when the e-mail sent by the wireless notification handset is received by the mail server of the mail center, the e-mail is automatically transferred to the call center for notification.

Further, it is preferable that the call center includes a database in which information of a caller is stored, and when the call is received, the caller is identified based on the database and the caller responds. In this case, when the call center receives the report, the database storing the information of the report source is searched, the report source is specified, and a response is made according to the search result.

[0011]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

The present embodiment is an example of application to an emergency call service in which a user can notify a service contractor who has contracted in advance of a physical condition change or the like and receive appropriate treatment. As shown in FIG. P to make a report through a public line
An HS wireless notification device 2, a self-employed wireless master device 3 and a public base station 4 for relaying communication from the wireless notification device 2 to a circuit switching network, and a report destination from the wireless notification device 2. It consists of a call center 5 and a mail center 6.

The radio alert handset 2 is a terminal for making a call in an emergency and can be formed by a PHS terminal capable of PHS radio communication. This wireless notification handset 2
As shown in FIG. 2, to the central processing unit 20 that controls the whole of the wireless reporting handset 2, and to the below-mentioned private wireless base unit 3 or public base station 4 which becomes a relay base station under the control of the central processing unit 20. Wireless control unit 21 that performs necessary processing relating to wireless communication, an antenna unit 22 that transmits and receives radio waves, a microphone unit 23 that inputs a voice, a speaker unit 24 that outputs a voice, a microphone unit 23 and a speaker unit. A voice processing unit 25 for converting signals between the wireless control unit 24 and the wireless control unit 21, an operation unit 26 for giving a trigger for reporting, and a central processing unit 2
The storage unit 27 stores a processing program according to 0 and is used as a work area, and a power supply unit 28 that supplies power to each unit.

The central processing unit 20 is a microprocessor for controlling each unit of the main body of the wireless notification slave unit 2, and is initialization processing at the time of power-on, outgoing call at the time of call, call, disconnection processing, control processing of the wireless control unit 21. , Monitoring processing of signals from the operation unit 26, and the like. In addition, this wireless notification handset 2
Central processing unit 2 equipped with communication means by e-mail
In 0, an e-mail for notification is created and at the same time, SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer)
e-mail is transmitted in accordance with the procedure of the er Protocol).

The radio control unit 21 performs processing such as control channel setting and communication channel setting for transmitting and receiving PHS radio signals, and analyzes received radio signals. It operates in cooperation with the unit 20. The wireless control unit 21 also functions as an interface between the audio signal and the wireless signal with the audio processing unit 25 described later.

The voice processing unit 25 processes the information of the voice signal input / output from the microphone 23 and the speaker 24 provided in the main body of the radio alerting handset 2. Here, the volume control of the voice when the voice is input from the microphone, A / D conversion, P
CM / ADPCM conversion, conversely ADPCM / PCM conversion when outputting to a speaker, D / A conversion, volume adjustment, etc. will be performed.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the operation portion 26 is formed by providing a consultation button 26A, an emergency notification button 26B, and a call disconnection button 26C on the front surface of the main body. The consultation button 26A is provided on the assumption that it may be pressed by the caller when, for example, he / she wants to consult with him, but he / she does not need to hurry. In this embodiment, a calling process to the call center 5 described later is activated. You can talk. Further, the emergency call button 26B is a button provided for the purpose of, for example, notifying of a sudden change in the physical condition of the caller, and when the call processing to the call center 5 is activated and the electronic mail to the mail center 6 is sent. The mail transmission process is started. When the call ends, the call disconnection process is performed by pressing the call disconnection button 26C.

The storage unit 27 is formed of a ROM or a RAM. The ROM stores each processing program, the telephone number of the report destination, and the like, which are called from the central processing unit 20 as necessary. Will be done. Also,
The RAM will be used by the central processing unit 20 and the like as a work area.

The self-employed radio base unit 3 is a device for processing radio waves from the radio reporting handset and relaying them to the subscriber line exchange in the public line network. This self-employed wireless base unit 3
As shown in FIG. 4, the central processing unit 30 that controls the entire self-employed wireless master device 3, the antenna unit 32 that transmits and receives the wireless signal from the wireless notification slave device 2 described above, and the received wireless signal A radio control unit 31 that performs an analysis process and the like, and a process for transmitting the analyzed signal to a public line network such as an ISDN line, and a public line control for processing a signal transmitted from the public line network. Unit 39, audio processing unit 35 for processing audio signals, and storage unit 3 for storing processing programs by the central processing unit 30 and used as a work area.
7, and a power supply unit 38 that supplies power to each of these units.

The function of each part of the self-employed wireless master unit 3 is as follows.
Since it corresponds to the function of each unit in the above-described wireless notification slave unit 2, only the differences will be described.

The central processing unit 30 is used by the self-employed wireless master device 3.
Controls the main unit. Specifically, in order to perform the initialization process at the time of turning on the power and to realize the communication between the wireless notification slave unit 2 and the ISDN network which is a public line network, the protocol and ISDN in the PHS master unit which are defined in advance are set. Performs processing such as protocol conversion.

The public line control unit 39 is a part that serves as an interface with a public line network such as an ISDN line.
When the wireless signal from the wireless communication handset 2 is received, ISD
When a signal is received from the ISDN line by processing for transmission to the N network, the signal is processed and the processing result is delivered to the central processing unit 30.

The ROM of the storage unit 37 is the central processing unit 2
In addition to storing each processing program of 0, a fixed table is stored. This fixed table stores parameters and the like used during communication.

The public base station 4 generally uses a CS (Cell).
Station), which is connected to a PHS connecting device installed at the nearest station by an ISDN line, and is connected to a subscriber line exchange of the telephone network via this. The public base station 4 receives the radio signal from the radio reporting handset 2 and relays it to the circuit switching network, and in that sense has the same function as the self-employed radio base unit 3. However,
The public base station 4 is different in that the radiated power is larger than that of the self-employed wireless master device 3 and the number of connectable terminals is large.

On the public line network side, a call center 5 which is a voice call destination connected to the public line network and a mail center 6 which is an electronic mail transmission destination are connected. Either or both of them will be reported.

The call center 5 is a center to which a voice call from the radio reporting handset 2 is sent, and is connected to the public line network side. In this embodiment, the call center 5 serves as a report destination for notifying a physical condition change. In this case,
It is a call center of a service contractor who has contracted in advance, and an operator is always stationed to respond by voice. The call center 5 is provided with a customer database 51 serving as a report source list, and the customer information such as the address and name of the reporter can be confirmed from the calling number of the report source. In addition, in this case, the service provider assigns a staff member to each region, and in case of an emergency call, the staff member is urged by the instruction of the operator. In addition, this call center 5
It may be possible to reply to the caller by an automatic voice response such as "I confirmed the report. Please wait until the staff arrives."

The mail center 6 is a center to which a notification is sent by the electronic mail from the wireless notification handset 2, and is connected to an access point of an Internet provider via a public line network. In this embodiment, it serves as a window of an e-mail correspondence center for notifying a service contractor who has contracted in advance of a physical condition change, for example, as shown in FIG.
A message is received from the wireless notification handset 2 as shown in, and the operator takes a predetermined action such as requesting dispatch of an ambulance or contacting a designated contact.
Further, the mail center 6 is equipped with a mail server 61, and the electronic mail received by the mail server 61 is automatically transferred to the call center 5 connected by a dedicated line. It is managed as a history and can be reported more reliably.

Next, a call from the radio reporting handset 2, a call,
A communication sequence such as disconnection will be described with reference to the communication sequence diagram of FIG. In FIG. 6, the public base station 4
3 shows a communication sequence when connecting to the call center 5 through a communication path via.

When a button that is a trigger for making a report is pressed in the wireless report handset 2, a call origination process to the call center 5, which is the call destination, is started. First, the wireless communication slave device 2 requests the establishment of a link channel to the self-employed wireless master device 3 or the public base station 4 by a link channel establishment request message as shown in FIG. Next, when a response is returned, the communication channel is established and the data link layer is controlled. Then, call control such as control of the network layer is performed. After that, when it is confirmed that a response to the call setting from the exchange side is returned, the PHS-specific radio management and mobility management operations are performed, and the call with the callee becomes possible. Further, after the call ends, the disconnection process confirms disconnection of the line from the callee, and the call is released in the reverse procedure of the call origination process. The communication sequence at the time of sending an electronic mail is performed in the procedure as shown in FIG. That is, the exchange is relayed to the access point of the contracted provider and communication is performed via the Internet.

When congestion occurs on the exchange side as shown in the communication sequence of FIG. 9, a signal requesting disconnection is returned from the circuit exchange network side. It will be possible to detect.
When the wireless notification handset 2 that receives this signal finally cannot establish a call due to congestion, it notifies the user of the congestion by a busy tone or voice announcement.

In the above description of the communication sequence, the communication sequence in the case where the public base station 4 is selected as the notification route has been described. However, by switching the notification route between the self-employed wireless master device 3 and the public base station 4, circuit switching is performed. In the network, communication is relayed by an exchange different from that used until then, and communication is performed through a different communication path. Also, selecting and switching between a call and an e-mail as the notification means also results in communication through different communication routes for the same reason. Therefore, even when a part of the circuit switched network is congested, it is possible to avoid the congestion by selecting a reporting route that is not congested.

Next, in the notification system 1 of the present embodiment,
The operation when the consultation button 26A is pressed will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In the wireless notification slave unit 2, when the power is turned on, the central processing unit 2 performs initialization processing as initialization processing.
In No. 0, the necessary processing program is read out from the memory, and the telephone number of the call center 5 which is the notification destination registered in advance is read out. The self-employed wireless master device 3 is selected and set as the initial notification route (ST
1).

Then, in the normal state, the radio reporting handset 2
Will monitor the notification buttons (ST
2). In this state, when the consultation button 26A, which is a reporting button, is pressed, it is confirmed whether or not the user himself / herself is within the radio range of the self-employed wireless master device 3 (ST3), and transmission processing is started (ST5). . At this time, it is judged whether or not there is congestion in the exchange (ST6), and if no congestion is detected, the call processing shown in the communication sequence diagram of FIG. 6 is performed (ST7). When the call ends, disconnection processing is performed (ST
8).

On the other hand, when the congestion in the exchange shown in FIG. 9 is detected, the connection destination is changed. Here, when the self-employed wireless master device 3 is designated as the connection destination, the connection destination is changed to the public base station 4 and the notification route is switched (ST4). When the public base station 4 is designated as the connection destination, a voice message indicating the connection failure is returned (ST10).

Next, in the notification system 1 of the present embodiment,
The operation when the emergency call button 26B is pressed will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. It should be noted that the same part as the operation when the consultation button 26A is pressed, such as the initialization process, will be omitted.

In this embodiment, the emergency call button 26B is set so as to make both a voice notification and an electronic mail notification. First, when congestion is not detected, a voice notification is made via the self-employed wireless master device 3. If the self-employed wireless base unit 3 is not within the radio wave range, a voice notification is made via the public base station 4. After the call origination process (ST15) at the time of these notifications, if no congestion occurs, the call process (ST17) and the disconnection process (S) are performed as in the case described above.
T18) is performed.

If congestion is detected after the calling process (S
T16), voice call, e-mail notification means,
The notification route such as the self-employed wireless master device 3 and the public base station 4 is selected and switched. In the case where the radio wave of the self-employed wireless master device 3 is within range, the self-employed radio master device 3 is selected as the reporting means and the voice call is selected as the reporting means in the initial state. The presence or absence of congestion in the circuit switching network is detected on this notification route (ST16), and when it is determined that congestion has occurred, the notification route is switched to the notification route via the public base station 4 (ST22). Then, the outgoing call process is performed again, and when it is determined that congestion has occurred also in this notification route, it is switched to notification by e-mail via the self-employed wireless master device 3 in order to change the notification route and the notification means (ST23). ). Then, when it is determined that congestion has occurred also in the notification route and the notification means, the notification route is further changed and the electronic mail is transmitted via the public base station 4 (ST24). If congestion occurs also in this notification route and notification means, a voice message that the connection will not be established due to congestion will be returned to the user as a failure process (ST25). In addition, when the report by the voice call is successful, the electronic mail is transmitted to the mail center 6 using the report route.

As described above, when the wireless communication handset 2 connected to the public line network via the private radio base unit 3 or the public base station 4 detects congestion in the public line network, the voice Alternatively, the notification means by e-mail is selected and the notification route such as the self-employed wireless master device 3 or the public base station 4 is also selected, and the call center 5 or the e-mail destination, which is a voice call destination provided on the public line network side, is selected. Notification will be made to the mail center 6.

The call center 5 that received the report
Since the reporting source is specified based on the database in which the information of the reporting source is stored based on the outgoing information, it is possible to provide a more detailed service such as contacting the contact specified in the database 51. Further, in the mail center 6, when the mail server 61 receives the electronic mail transmitted by the wireless notification slave device 2, it is automatically transferred to the call center 5 connected by the leased line. Even if the voice notification cannot be made, the call center 5 is notified by electronic mail, and the notification can be made more reliably.

The notification system of the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned ones, and various modifications may be made within the scope not departing from the gist of the present invention, such as the order of selecting the notification route and the notification means. Of course you can get it.

[0041]

As described above, according to the notification system of the present invention, when congestion is detected in the circuit switched network in the wireless notification slave unit, the self-employed wireless master unit or When a report route such as a public base station is selected and a report means such as voice and / or e-mail is selected to make a report, even if there is a failure due to congestion in a part of the circuit switching network, the wireless report handset can be used. The superior effect of being able to report to the report recipient more reliably can be exhibited.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of a notification system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a wireless reporting slave of the same system.

FIG. 3 is an external view of a wireless communication slave of the same system.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a self-employed wireless master device of the same system.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a notification message by electronic mail of the system.

FIG. 6 is a communication sequence diagram showing a call procedure of the system.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a link channel establishment request message in the same system.

FIG. 8 is a communication sequence diagram showing an electronic mail transmission procedure in the system.

FIG. 9 is a communication sequence diagram showing a call procedure when the system is congested.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an operation when the consultation button of the system is pressed.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an operation when the emergency call button of the system is pressed.

FIG. 12 is a system configuration diagram of a conventional notification system.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 reporting system 2 Radio reporting handset 3 Self-employed wireless base unit 4 public base stations 5 Call center 51 Database 6 mail center 61 mail server

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ identification code FI theme code (reference) H04B 7/26 H04M 11/04 H04M 11/04 H04B 7/26 109B H04Q 7/38 M (72) Inventor Katsuhiko Kimura 1048, Kadoma, Kadoma, Osaka Prefecture Matsushita Electric Works Co., Ltd. F-term within the company (reference) HH17 HH22 5K101 KK02 KK14 LL12 MM07 NN02 QQ07 RR04

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A voice provided on the public line network side by using a reporting means by voice or e-mail from a self-employed radio base unit or a radio reporting handset connected to a public network via a public base station. In a reporting system that reports to a call center that is a call destination or a mail center that is an e-mail destination, the wireless reporting handset notifies the private base station or public base station when congestion in the public line network is detected. A notification system characterized by selecting a route and selecting a voice and / or electronic mail notification means to make a notification. 2. The mail center comprises a mail server for receiving electronic mail, and when the electronic mail is received from a wireless notification handset, the mail center automatically transfers and notifies the call center. The reporting system described in 1. 3. The call center comprises a database in which information of a caller is stored, and when a call is received, the caller is identified based on the database and the caller responds to the caller. Report system described.